Details
- A friendly introduction to the workings of the English legal system for new students covering all the contemporary debates
- Encourages you to think critically about the legal system and whether it is fit for purpose
- Draws upon the author's considerable experience in both working on law reform and in teaching the law
New to this edition
- Fully updated to include changes to civil justice and the funding of litigation, new forms of practice, ADR, the changing role of the Supreme Court, and further discussion of professional ethics.
Are you new to studying law?
You've decided to study one of the most fascinating and intellectually stimulating subjects - law. Whether you're working towards a law degree or studying law as part of another subject, Introduction to the English Legal System is your ideal starting point. Right from the word go, Martin Partington enlivens and clarifies the legal system, and explains the central role it plays in society.
Do you want to think critically about the world in which you live?
What is the purpose of law? Whose interests does the law favour? Consolidating over 40 years' experience in the law, Martin Partington will challenge your assumptions about the English legal system, and encourage you to question how far it meets the demands placed upon it.
Are you aware of contemporary debates on the legal system?
Annually updated, Introduction to the English Legal System discusses all the latest debates and issues that will affect you during your studies and looking ahead to your career. Interview podcasts, discussion questions and more can be found on the accompanying author blog and Online Resource Centre.
Readership: Pre-course reading for undergraduate law students; main text for students taking an English Legal System course in the first year of LLB or GDL. Ideal for courses where no formal instruction in the legal system is provided; excellent for college students studying law at A-level; those considering a career in law; and students on courses with a legal component (eg. business studies; citizenship studies) who need to acquire foundation knowledge of the legal system.
Introduction
1: Aims, themes and structure
Law, society, and authority
2: Law and society: the purposes and functions of law
3: Law-making: authority and process
The institutional framework
4: Shaping the institutional framework: the role of government
5: The criminal justice system
6: The administrative justice system
7: The family justice system
8: The civil and commercial justice system
The delivery and funding of legal services
9: Delivering legal services: practitioners, adjudicators, and legal scholars
10: Funding legal services
Conclusion
11: Is the English legal system fit for purpose?
Martin Partington is Emeritus Professor of Law, Bristol University. For five years, he was Law Commissioner, and was retained by the Law Commission as a special consultant in order to complete its major programme of work on the reform of housing law until 2008. He was a special consultant to the Leggatt Review of Tribunals in 2001. He has been a member of numerous committees and bodies working within the English Legal System. In 2011-2012 he was a consultant to the Public Administration Select Committee of the House of Commons. He was appointed CBE in 2002, elected a Bencher of Middle Temple in 2006, and made an honorary Queens Counsel in 2008.
Review(s) from previous edition
"Martin Partington has succeeded admirably in providing a text which both explains things clearly, and encourages the reader to think about the enormous changes currently affecting the legal system. He has been able to draw on his experience not only as a teacher of law, but also as a law reformer and contributor to the work of many important committees. - Lord Philips of Worth Matravers
"A really good introduction to this subject; ideal as pre-course reading." - Rebecca Smith, Lecturer in Law, University of Wales, Newport
"A very good read - this is academic writing at its best. There is a clear narrative and the reader is encouraged to form their own opinions." - Roger Thomas, Lecturer in Law, Anglia Ruskin University
"A comprehensive introduction to the basic role and workings of the English Legal System. Introduction to the English Legal System provides a detailed explanation of the key legal institutions in a logical and easy-to-follow structure." - Laurence Thomas, Law student, Durham University
